Litigation

A Victorian developer seeking to recover $6.5 million from the builder on a Gardenvale residential project has lost its bid to avoid paying security, with an appeals court finding there was a risk it could not meet an adverse costs order.

Law firm Mills Oakley is seeking summary judgment in a lawsuit alleging it gave negligent advice about demolishing an inherited property, which allegedly resulted in the loss of a capital gains tax exemption.

A contradictor has urged a judge to reject an $18 million settlement in a class action over sinking homes, saying that owners' claims that were excluded had not been fully investigated.

Tossing a case by Tahmoor Coal's liquidators over a royalty deed that gave Glencore payments in perpetuity and impacted the company's sale price, an appeals court has found the deed was not unprofitable just because creditors might get a better return without it.

A judge has allowed a barrister who successfully defended a Perth gym in nuisance proceedings by a hospital to be paid 30 per cent above the scale rate, citing the matter's complexity and high stakes and the experience of opposing counsel.

Tech and management consultancy Capco has won preliminary discovery as it considers whether it has a case against a former senior employee who resigned to work for rival NTT Data.

An appeals court has ruled that Heran Group's York Property can call on $6.4 million in bank guarantees in its dispute with builder Tomkins, which alleges that a $17.5 million payment certificate issued under a contract to build a 119-Gold Coast residential tower was not authorised.

The defunct developer behind the planned Pentridge Village project in Melbourne can't defer costs in failed proceedings against the project's financiers, despite a foreshadowed new suit against them. 

A developer facing a class action from homeowners who claim their properties are sinking has dragged engineering firms Simmonds and Hunter Geotechincal Services into the case.

A judge won't order expert mathematical evidence in a suit against Monash University over alleged unpaid bed rent, saying the calculations could be done by someone in Year 7.